Happy New Year!

I still coming up for air and 2012 is a goner.

Hold on to your seats kids, this ride is about to get funkier.

But seriously, 2012 was a year of complete upheaval in my life, so rather than doing a retrospective, I'm going to look forward to 2013 and many life changes.

In 2013 I'm moving to Portland, OR. Yep, one more move, but this time we're settling down. (I hope)

There will be at least one less student fighting and slaving away trying to complete a PhD (moi). My sister is coming to stay with me for a whole year (this is a good thing).

And I'm planning more changes at a more individual level. These are heartfelt goals that I intend to use as a guide not just resolutions to discard by March. I plan to live a more focused, intentional life.

I vow to:

Be kinder and more accepting of others.

Smile more and more often.

Listen more and speak less.

Make the time for those I love.

Stop and think positively.

Simplify life.

Reach for a minimalist approach (i.e. get rid of "stuff" cluttering my life).

Organize different aspects of life.

That last one includes planning the blog and posting more regularly. More to come on that.

Here's to a new year.

sorry about the quality of the picture - my camera went to Portland already and I'm still in NY for the next 2 weeks

A day for giving thanks

I love Thanksgiving.

It's the one holiday, squeezed between two other awesome but very commercialized holidays, that still centers around family. At least for us it does. It's not that I don't love Christmas, I do. Believe me, I do. But there's just something fulfilling about thanksgiving and getting together with the family for a big feast. I like the idea of taking time to reflect on the things I am grateful for, and we do it almost every day before bed or at dinner time. But then, to have a special day dedicated to that, that's just gravy.

So, in honor of this great holiday, here's my list of 10 things I am thankful for (in no particular order).

The princess drew this for me at school

1. Life: waking up everyday to a brand new day, alive and healthy.
2. Beauty: take a look outside and find beauty around you. It's there.
3. Family: it's a given, but I love my family so much. All of them, even when I'm mad at them.
4. Laughter: its infectious, and the cure for the worst cases of the blues. Go figure.
5. Friends: a second family that I've chosen myself. Here's to making new ones and finding long lost others.
6. Opportunity: I've been given so many great opportunities, though I haven't succeeded in all.
7. This blog: it's been neglected but never abandoned because it makes me so happy and provides an outlet for my scattered brain.
8. You: my bloggy friends who still take time to stop by, read a bit, and say hello sometimes. You make my life happier.
9. My husband: life would be so much sadder without him to share it with.
10. My daughters: yeah, they're family of course, but they get a special place of their own. I'm so thankful and amazed that they're here.

And speaking of family, here's what I received from mine. My aunt sent me these adorable mittens for N1 (the princess) and the cutest hat for N2 (the dragon). One day I hope to be as good as she is with crochet...

Thank you for stopping by!